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Speak Out
Legislating Morality: Should a town lift its video game ban?
It’s not uncommon for municipal governments to ban things from their town’s borders.
It might be something to keep their citizens safe – you hear about “dry towns,” which have passed bans on alcohol sales to curb drunken driving.
It might be to keep citizens healthy, perhaps a ban on public smoking.
It might be to keep their citizens behaving within a certain moral code – bans on gambling or adult-oriented businesses.
And sometimes, the bans might just be head-scratchers.
Today, the coastal town of Marshfield, Mass., has a 29-year-old law on the books banning video games from local businesses that might set them up – grocery stores, restaurants and gas stations. It remains in effect despite a challenge that went to the Supreme Court; the justices declined to hear the case, and the law remained in place. As a Washington Post editorial summed up at the time, “banning video games is no more illegal than banning such oldtime nuisances as pool halls and saloons.”
| When the appeal of the ban traveled to the Supreme Court in 1983, proponents argued that arcade games were a form of expression and that banning them was a violation of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. But when a Massachusetts appeals court was shown video games in play, it decided that there was no message being communicated, just pure entertainment. Video games, the court decided, “are, in essence, only technologically advanced pinball machines.” |
Back then, the quiet town was concerned that public arcade games would lead Marshfield’s children astray into immoral behavior – stealing from their parents or selling drugs to get quarters to play another round of Zaxxon. This was also the very dawn of video game entertainment – which has evolved into a cornerstone of American life – and town officials who introduced the ban were worried about games decreasing the ability of children to learn, and eroding the bond they share with their families.
Today the situation is different. Video games aren’t typically played in restaurants or grocery stores – they’re played at home, on PS3s or Wiis. And they don’t require a steady stream of quarters to use, as long as you have the disc, a friend who can lend it to you, or a subscription to GameFly. George Mallet, a Marshfield resident who in April petitioned to repeal the video game ban, said in the Patriot Ledger, “Why should I have to go to Pembroke [the next town over] to play Pac-Man?” If this is true, it’s probably safe to say Mallet is the only one traveling any distance to play a dusty old arcade game.
But business owners have real incentive to bring back quarter video games. At the time, businesses fighting the ban pointed to the amount of their revenue that came from arcade games – the owner of a bowling alley said it accounted for 20 percent of his business. Indeed, bowling alleys remain one place where arcade games still thrive. Lifting the ban would allow more revenue to flow into businesses, which translates to more tax dollars in the town coffers.
But opponents of the repeal are concerned with what type of public video games would emerge in this day and age. Faith Jean, who backed the ban in 1982, told WCVB-TV, “We are not talking about little video games that kids play or pinball machines. We are talking about slot machines, gambling machines. Coin-operated devices are one more thing your kids will be asking money for. What kind of town do we want Marshfield to be?”
These fears were echoed in interviews by the Patriot Ledger, where resident Tom Jackson said the repeal would “open the door to adult entertainment – guaranteed,” and Police Chief William P. Sullivan Jr. said children would be placed “at risk to the negative aspects of life.”
Mallet’s proposed repeal of the ban was brought up at a recent town meeting, but officials voted to keep it in place and keep video games out of Marshfield for now. Opponents say the town needs to come “out of the dark ages.”
“I understand there are people who can’t control their kids (playing video games) – but that’s their problem. I’m 55 and I like pinball machines,” resident Jacqueline Little said.
What do you think?
Should Marshfield lift its video game ban? Is the extra revenue it might generate worth the repeal? Is the risk to the town’s youth a real danger? Should the town legislate moral behavior? Join the discussion!
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